Thursday, June 28, 2007

Country Living at Its Best

Yesterday was a scorcher here in Halifax. The first day that even having the windows open didn't help -Atlantic breezes or not! But, even though I've complained about feeling isolated out here in the country (Joanna and her husband live just a short commute from Halifax and on lakefront property, no less), yesterday made me see country living in a whole new light. (By the way...I had to wear a sweater this morning - 13 C/ 55 F).

The picture above is actually of the neighbour's property (you can barely see Jo & Ezra's foresty property on left hand edge of the photo). It's easier to get to the water using the neighbour's lawn even though Jo & Ezra's place makes you feel like you are hiking in the wilderness - very Zen and peaceful as you can see below.

Taken in April, but you can see how close the water is (the grade is very steep though)...

Same locale, taken today...you can barely see the lake through the thick growth of trees.

When asked when the lake warms up, locals smile and say "oh, August, sometime". The lake is just a few miles as the crow flies from the Atlantic Ocean which is why it's usually cold long after lakes further inland warm up. So Sharron and I held our collective breath as we jumped in....it was glorious - cool but not heart stopping and perfect to stop the blood from boiling. In a word....Heavenly!

Back to the neighbours, who are very "neighbourly" indeed. They generously let us use their dock (see the top photo). So in return for letting us lounge, I made the neighbours a little snack...